When my son moved into his big boy room, I brought most of his nursery art with him, so he’d be surrounded by the familiarity of the art that comforted him or caught his interest as a baby. This leaves me with the pleasure of choosing new art for the next nursery occupant, due to arrive the beginning of May. I find great joy in this task; I feel that choosing the art you’ll display in your little one’s room is one of the more important decisions you’ll make while putting a nursery together.
While your baby spends precious quiet time alone in their new space, their eyes will search around the room, gradually becoming better at focusing, and they’ll start to see things with sharper clarity. What better way to help them than by choosing thoughtful pieces to display around the room?
The first time around, I chose a combination of a few pieces I painted, along with some that I purchased. If you’re artistic or creatively inclined, I think pieces made by you are so special. If not, don’t worry- there are so many great sources for timeless, affordable works of art that would look great in a nursery- and beyond! The key to finding great art is choosing things that can grow with your child…and knowing where to look!
Here are some tips for choosing art for your nursery or toddler room:
1. Choose pieces that have interesting shapes and contrasting or bright colors! Babies cannot see pastels or soft neutrals very well, so while it is tempting to cover your walls in soft baby-hues, it will all just be a blur to your baby and won’t help them learn to focus.
2. Think of something special or memorable. We were just in California and I wanted a piece of art that would remind me of the trip when my baby was with me in my belly. I found this cactus watercolor print (there were beautiful cacti everywhere out there) and someday I’ll be able to explain to him why I picked it for his room, so there is an element of sentimentality to this piece.
3. Avoid pieces that are overly baby-ish. If you’re going to spend the money, choose art that YOU also enjoy. You’re going to spend a lot of time in that nursery and you’ll be staring at the walls more than you could imagine, so that painting of a pink fairy might get old fast. Not to mention, your little one is eventually going to grow out of art that is made for the very small window of time when they are babies. My thinking is, you should like it enough to hang it anywhere in your home.
4. Don’t worry about themes. The pieces you choose should look cohesive but they don’t all need to be butterflies and flowers, sailboats and anchors, frogs and lily pads…you get my point.
Here is the original artwork I chose for my oldest son’s room:
His toddler room now includes some of his framed finger paintings, in addition to a few of the pieces you see here. And as I mentioned, I’m currently in the middle of compiling new art for the nursery! Here are some of my favorite places to find art for nurseries and kids’ rooms:
Max Wanger Print shop. Gorgeous, serene prints of photographs at affordable prices. Great colors and fun, youthful subject matter.
The Animal Print Shop. I’m a long time fan of Sharon Montrose. Her animal photography is amazing and her prints constantly appear in the most stylish baby rooms. My son has the baby elephant print (seen above) and the new baby will have the large male lion print.
Etsy! I adore Etsy because if gives artists all over the world a chance to put their work out there. I bought the cactus print from Yao Cheng Design. I also love pieces by AMMIKI, Leah Duncan, Oh My Deer, Gregory Beauchamp, and Eve Sand…to name just a few!
Society 6 has an amazing selection of really hip prints for your little one’s room.
Even Tide Collective has whimsical, beautiful, affordable photographs from various talented artists. How cute would this one be next to a crib?!
I’m so looking forward to introducing the new member of our family to his room and I hope he’ll love the art I’ve picked for him as much as I do.
How do you pick art for your kids’ rooms? Do you have favorite artists or websites for sourcing great pieces? Do share! Happy nesting!
